Steinway & Sons To Serve As Presenting Sponsor Of Concert To Celebrate The City Of Havana

To Mark the Concert, Featuring Marin Alsop, Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Cuba, Lang Lang and Chucho Valdés, Steinway & Sons will Present the People of Cuba with the Concert Grand Piano Played by Lang Lang

New York, NY—October 5, 2015—Steinway & Sons, maker of the world’s finest pianos, has announced that the company will serve as the official presenting sponsor of the concert to celebrate the City of Havana on the eve of the 500th anniversary of its founding. As a lasting gift to the people of Cuba, Steinway & Sons is also donating to the Cuban Institute of Music the Model D concert grand piano that Lang Lang will perform on that evening. The concert will be held outdoors at the Plaza de la Catedral in historic La Habana Vieja, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, on Friday, October 9 at 10:00 p.m. CDT/EDT.

Marin Alsop will conduct the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Cuba, with Steinway ArtistLang Lang and Chucho Valdés as soloists, performing works by Tchaikovsky and Elgar, New York composers George Gershwin and James P. Jones, as well as Cuban composers Ernesto Lecouona, A.M. Roeu, and Chucho Valdés. Both Lang Lang and Chucho Valdés will perform on Steinway & Sons pianos.

Michael T. Sweeney, C.E.O. of Steinway & Sons, states “Cuba is a country with a vibrant musical heritage that boasts many global influences, so there could be no better way to celebrate the 500th anniversary of Havana than through a concert such as this, which will bring together exceptional artists from all over the world.” Sweeney continues, “Part of our heritage at Steinway & Sons has been to serve as an ambassador for the musical arts, and as such we are honored to help bring this historic event to the people of Cuba and hope that our gift of the Steinway & Sons piano will bring inspiration and joy to the people of Cuba.”

Ron Losby, President of Steinway & Sons Americas, adds, “Music has the unique ability to join people together and this concert is proof of that. As the official presenting sponsor, for the first time in over 50 years Steinway & Sons will have the opportunity to celebrate side-by-side with our friends in Havana; that’s the power of music.”

Concert producers, Jean-Jacques Cesbron, President, CAMI Music, and Eric Latzky, Principal, Culture Communications | NY, stated jointly, “In this dawn of a new openness, musical collaboration with Cuba and Cuban musicians is more possible than ever, and more important than ever. In creating this concert, in partnership with the Cuban Institute of Music and Ministry of Culture of Cuba, our dream was to join hands with the vibrant musical culture of Cuba. To see Lang Lang, Chucho Valdes, Marin Alsop, and the Cuban National Symphony Orchestra onstage together, we hope, represents a vision of many great collaborative efforts to come.” Cesbron and Latzky continue, “Steinway & Sons is essential to this vision, we are deeply appreciative of their support.”

The concert is co-produced by CAMI Music (CAMImusic.com) and ELCCNY (ELCCNY.com) in cooperation with the Cuban Institute of Music in Havana, Cuba, and the Ministry of Culture of Cuba.

The Cuban Institute of Music/Instituto Cubano de la Música (ICM) was created in 1989 and serves as the agency within the Cuban Ministry of Culture that oversees music and entertainment policy within the country, as well as the development, enrichment, and promotion of the nation’s musical heritage.

About Steinway & Sons
Since its founding in New York in 1853, Steinway & Sons has been considered the world's premier piano manufacturer. Known for their exceptional craftsmanship, Steinway & Sons pianos are built in one of two company-owned and operated factories: Astoria, New York and Hamburg, Germany. Steinway & Sons pianos are still constructed primarily by hand, using many of the techniques developed over 160 years ago. Today, Steinway & Sons also offers the Boston and Essex piano lines, Listen, a magazine for music and culture lovers, and the Steinway & Sons record label. For more information, visit www.steinway.com.